Posts Tagged: "pli"

Chief Judge Rader Takes on Lobbying White House and SCOTUS

The discussion was lively, perhaps even explosive. You could nearly see sparks fly when Chief Judge Rader continued to pepper Seth Waxman with question after question about his opinion on the propriety of parties lobbying the White House in order to obtain a favorable amici brief from the Department of Justice. Rader zeroed in on the slippery slope and obviously is not pleased with the mixing of law and politics, saying: “this is a cause for concern… Politics and law have a divide.” It is indeed troubling that the White House under both President Bush and President Obama have allowed lobbying by parties who seek a favorable DOJ amici brief. Interpretations of the law shouldn’t be for sale, or appear to be for sale to the largest donors.

Vote for Chance to Win FREE PLI Patent Bar Review Course

In cooperation with the Practising Law Institute, I will be giving away 1 free PLI Patent Bar Review Course to one lucky individual. Entry is free, but to be eligible you must vote for IPWatchdog.com and tweet the vote count after your vote.

PTO Updates Patent Bar Exam to Test AIA & Appeal Rules

Beginning January 31, 2012, the United States Patent and Trademark Office will update the content of the patent registration examination to cover two new rules issued September 26, 2011 that relate to the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act. These new rules permit prioritized examination of patent applications (Track I) and revise the standard for granting inter partes reexamination requests. Additionally, the patent registration examination will also include questions concerning the November 22, 2011 rules governing practice in ex parte appeals before the Board of Patent Appeals and Interferences.

Key Considerations for Patent Strategies in China

As the second largest economy in the world, China is emerging to the center of the world’s economic stage. This emergence has been accompanied by constant changes in its legal and economic sectors. The intellectual property sector also has witnessed numerous recent changes. There have been significant new advances in China’s national innovation policies. New trends in Chinese patent filings have emerged. A growing number of Chinese companies are creating their own IP and increasingly filing infringement suits against foreign companies and their local competitors in China. China’s third patent law amendment has materially changed patent practice and procedures in that country.

Patent Reform and Patent Bar Review, What You Should Know

Don’t forget that as of the end of the 2011 fiscal year on September 30, 2011, the PTO has a “backfile” of nearly 679,000 patent applications that have not yet been given even a first Office Action. It will take at least 3 to 4 years, likely longer, to resolve all the patent applications currently pending. If you factor in appeals from those cases, continuation applications and requests for continued examination and we are realistically talking about 7 to 8 years for this chunk of applications to work their way through the system, with the inevitable outlier patent application that will take 10+ years thanks to multiple delaying episodes (i.e., chaining RCEs and an appeal together, for example). On top of this, we will still be filing patent applications subject to the old, first to invent system through March 15, 2013. This, as well as reexamination timeline realities (i.e., statute of limitations survives 6 years past a patent falling into the public domain), means that the “old law” will remain relevant to life at the Patent Office for quite some time.